September 6, 2007

Email and Text Messaging Are Different Types of Communication Tools

In "Text Messaging VS E-mail Marketing," Gene Carr, founder and president of Patron Technology, argues that "text messaging is a transitional technology" and will be replaced by email. [via Danciti]

I think that Carr's position is incorrect on most counts.

First, email and text messaging (SMS) are two different forms of communication. For me, text messaging is great for sending and receiving short messages from people I already know. It answers basic questions about where are you now, what are you doing and related topics that can be dealt with in a sentence or two. Even though I can easily send and receive email from my Sprint phone, text messaging is still a faster form of communications in many situations.

Second, the type of information that I want to receive via SMS is different than what I want to receive via email. For example, I like receiving a weekly lists of dance performances via email--either from DanceMetro/DC or Dance/NYC. But I sure don't want to receive a long list of performances via text messaging, actually it's not possible. What I would like via text messaging are changes in scheduling and other details for specific dance performances that I am likely to attend or will attend.

So let's turn to Carr's points:

1) "The lines between e-mail and text messaging will blur."

Yes, you can send email messages and text messages from the same application. But users of each of these tools have different expectations of how they want to use them and the types of information they wish to receive. In addition to the points I made above, text messaging is a two-way communications tool (among people); email, especially in the case of email marketing, is a broadcast tool and primarily meant for one-way marketing that is intended to inspire a specific response or action.

2) "Text messaging is just text: Text messaging is limited - you can only send 160 characters (not words), and it's plain text. You can't send a complex message, or an attachment, or a picture or video. And, there's no formatting. Text messages can't be easily stored, forwarded or archived."

Limited functionality does not by definition equate with being useless or inferior. The beauty of text messaging is its limitations. Nobody wants to attach a video to a text message. That's not its purpose.

3) "Text Messaging Merely Got There First: If getting e-mail on your phone was really what everyone wanted in the first place, the reason it didn't happen was that the first generation of cell phones couldn't support the technology infrastructure needed."

I don't agree with this statement. For whatever reason text messaging was created, it still makes sense even with email access on the same device. SMS is for instant communications and email is often for non-instantaneous communications. I don't want to have to go through all of my emails on my phone to communicate with somebody via SMS. Maybe there's an elegant way to combine the two on the receiving end into a single application but this doesn't seem like a high priority to me.

4) "The price of text messaging is about $.08 to $.10 per message, to send AND the same cost to receive a reply. In a world in which most of our clients pay half to one tenth that rate to send an e-mail and pay nothing to get a response from a consumer, I think it's a marketing method with a lot sizzle, but not a lot of beef."

As I wrote above, different types of communications are optimal for email and SMS. So if you do let your clients receive notices by text messaging, you'll be sending different types of information. For example, you can send changes in schedules via SMS, as I mentioned above, and you can also send short special offers to people who want to receive them.

Whether SMS messages are more expensive or not, that is not the main issue. If somebody wants to receive a message from you as a SMS message, it means that they have a very high interest in what you offer and they are very likely to attend your performance or other arts event. So if it costs an extra 10 cents to get them to buy a ticket, it is worth it because your conversion rate will be very high.

But there are also ways to send free SMS messages. If you put your event calendar on Google Calendar, anybody can sign-up for text message notification. So if a dancegoer wants to track one of your upcoming performances, they can simply subscribe to it and indicate how they would like to be notified. Here's a screen shot from Google Calendar where you set your event reminder preferences:

Posted by Doug Fox at 8:31 AM - Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

June 29, 2006

Universal Dance Movement Vocabulary

I cam across this interesting post on TechCrunch about a new Israeli start-up, Zlango, that has created an icon-based language for exchanging messages via SMS.

SMS is essentially text messaging for cell phones. In the case of Zlango, their new application is not text messaging but two-dimensional icon messaging where each graphic icon conveys a specific meaning. So to send a graphic message to a friend, you select a series of graphic icons.

Here's a screen shot of how a mobile phone looks like running Zlango:

And here's a sample graphic message created by a user on the Zlango site. I turned on the text below each icon so you could see what the meaning of this message was:

Maybe not the best expressed thought in the world, but it did get me thinking about a universal dance vocabulary.

Say instead of a two-dimensional icon-based visual language, you were asked to create a 3D video-based language library that anybody could use as an alternative to written words? The goal would be to covey any idea, thought or action to others who may or may not speak the same language as you.

Would it be possible to create this universal dance vocabulary? Do certain movements cut across cultural borders and express universal emotions and reactions? Or is dance tied too much to the culture and society in which it is created? And if dance is culturally-based, how would different societies express common emotions and reactions through movement?

I realize that my project may not be that practical. With the visual icons from Zlango, you simply view a series of small graphic images to discern the meaning. With a video language, a recipient of a message would have to watch an entire video clip - even if just a few seconds - in order to understand the meaning of the message. But then again maybe the greater depth of meaning and nuance that can be conveyed by dance is worth taking the extra time to watch the video clips?

Posted by Doug Fox at 10:46 AM - Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (1)

January 12, 2006

Double Your Dance Audiences

Here's how to double the size of the audience at your next dance performance:

1) Let's say you have a dance piece that's 15 minutes in duration. Take a camcorder and videotape the entire dance work.

2) Put the entire video on your website or blog. Make two versions available: one with a musical soundtrack and the second with an annotated audio guide. This second version would be the same as listening to an interview with the director or actors as you're watching a movie DVD. But in the case of a dance performance, the artistic director, choreographer and/or dancers would describe the piece as it unfolds.

3) Promote the two video versions of your dance piece like crazy. For instance, list your videos on Google Video, Yahoo Video Search, YouTube and Revver. And also create a podcast channel for your video so you can distribute it through iTunes. Finally, email every dance blogger and tell them what you're doing - you are sure to get a lot of exposure.

4) Make sure that both versions of your dance video include ample promotional information about your next performance so that viewers know where to buy tickets and see the event.

5) In addition, make the audio annotation guide available separately on your website also for free one week before your performance. Encourage your website viewers to transfer this audio guide to their portable music players and take it with them to your performance.

6) At your performance, perform this dance piece twice. The first performance is so that attendees can listen to the annotated audio guide while watching your performance. The second time so that viewers can enjoy the performance that much more because they will have significantly more background about the piece.

The notion that you can't give away video of dance performances because your audience will decrease in size is an unproven myth. More people go to musical concerts specifically because they have already listened to the music and/or watched a groups' videos.

Posted by Doug Fox at 7:32 AM - Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

December 2, 2005

Promoting Dance Through Hybrid Digital-Real World Technologies

Last week I spent a lot of time reading the stories on The Pondering Primate blog. The author, who goes by the name Vangorilla, covers mobile technologies and the emergence of new applications that integrate the online and physical worlds.

Two of the technologies covered recently in The Pondering Primate struck me as potentially interesting for dance and the arts world in general.

The first technology is Kooltag developed by Tagit. (You can read The Pondering Primate story, "Tagit Offers Physical World Connection").

Here's how Kooltag works: A person has a cell phone with a built-in camera. He comes across a brochure, ad, flyer or any other physical material that includes a two-diminsional bar code (a 2D barcode is similar to the barcode used to scan groceries at supermarkets except it stores more data). He uses his camera phone to take a picture of the 2D barcode and the software on the cell phone than grabs the associated media such as webpages, video, audio or blogs.

For example, let's say that you mail a postcard for an upcoming dance performance. On this postcard, you could include a 2D barcode. Then recipients could use their phones to take a snapshot of it. Once they take the picture of your barcode, the user will be automatically presented with videos, images and web pages that provide more details about your upcoming performance. This type of technology could also be used for mobile ticketing solutions as well.

The second technology is Hypertag. (You can read the story in The Pondering Primate "Aura's Hypertags Loved by Consumers").

Here's how Hypertag works: You start with a phone or other handheld device that supports infra-red or Bluetooth data transmissions (both infra-red and Bluetooth are popular ways of wirelessly sending digital data short distances - one or both of these technologies is built into most mobile devices). You come across an advertising billboard, poster or sign that features an embedded Hypertag. You point your mobile device at the tag and then you instantly receive content in the form of ring tones, games or other data that the advertiser wishes to have delivered to your device.

Visit this page on the Hypertag website to learn how this technology could be used as part of a museum tour. A user could point a mobile device at a tag next to a painting and then would receive images, audio, video or additional information about the picture.

One possible application of Hypertags for a dance performance could be the following: A person at a performance venue could point their mobile device at a billboard outside the theater. Instantly a detailed program guide is downloaded to the handheld device that includes a video introduction to the performance along with text, pictures and links. The downloaded package could even include a complete annotated audio guide to the performance that users listened to as the performance takes place.

Posted by Doug Fox at 7:30 AM - Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

November 11, 2005

Dance and the 99 Cent Video

Producers of TV shows and music videos are in the early stages of trying to figure out how to generate revenue by making their programs available via a pay-per-view model.

Click to view larger image of this screen shot of dance videos and TV shows available through iTunes

Apple, through its iTunes service, kicked-off the trend by making songs available for iPods at 99 cents. Now you can go to iTunes and buy music videos and popular TV programs for just $1.99 a piece. TV networks don't want to miss the bandwagon. Both NBC and CBS just announced plans to make their hit shows available for 99 cents a piece.

And the producers of the Emmy Awards, recognizing the increasing popularity of video content for cell phones, handhelds and other alternative devices, have created a new awards category for these emerging video formats.

These new distribution channels for video content will soon offer dancers and dance companies a new way to make money. Whether you want to sell a video of a stage performance, a dance on camera film, or a specially created video for online distribution, there is no reason that you cannot soon be selling videos for anywhere from $0.99 to $5.00 - and making good money in the process.

Posted by Doug Fox at 8:20 AM - Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

November 4, 2005

MoMA on iTunes

In my post yesterday about podcasting in the arts world, I left out the Museum of Modern Art.

I just realized that MoMA features a large number of audio tours on iTunes. Here's a screen shot. Click on the image to see a larger version.

Also, you can visit the audio page on the MoMA website to learn more about their podcasts, and to watch audio tours in conjunction with Flash animations that provide a visual component to these programs.

Posted by Doug Fox at 5:12 AM - Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

November 3, 2005

Where Are the Dance Podcasts?

It's good to see that in the visual and performing arts world audio podcasts are beginning to catch on.

Andrew Taylor has a post about some of these new podcasts:

- The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra has launched an E-Label version of its classics on iTunes. From the press release you can link to MSO's music on ITunes.

- The Frist Center for the Visual Arts in Nashville, Tennessee has a number of recent podcasts of exhibits at the Frist. I'm listening right now to one done by Exhibits Curator Mark Scala who is explaining a few works from the Hudson River School. He's giving a live tour and asking the audience questions as he discusses the paintings. Sounds interesting but I think I have to be looking at the paintings to benefit from this audio tour.

- GalleryCasts seems to be a new directory of art-related podcasts - there are currently four podcasts available.

- Stanford University has created Standford on iTunes, which includes a good number of audio files from lectures, music, and books and authors on its special section on iTunes - very impressive and very free.

So the question I have is when will the dance world join the podcasting fun? I think that video podcasts in particular would be a great way to promote upcoming dance performances.

Posted by Doug Fox at 4:47 PM - Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

October 19, 2005

Interactive Performances With Wireless Input

I've always been intrigued by how audiences might contribute to or participate in dance performances by using different types of wireless communication devices.

There was a performance last year called Texterritory v.2.3 in England that enabled audience members to use a wireless device in order to direct and inspire the dance performance. In a nutshell, the audience used mobile phones to vote on which outfit the dancer, Grace, should wear for a blind date. Plus, audience members sent short text messages, which were projected on a screen and inspired an improvisational dance piece. On the Texterritory site, you'll find a video clip highlight of the performance.

This is the only dance performance I've come across that leverages wireless devices to encourage real-time participation.

But I did come across today, on the network_performance site, a multimedia public performance program called SimpleTEXT that outputs sounds and images based upon real-time feedback from audience members using cell phones and handheld devices.

Here's how the creators of SimpleTEXT describe their mission:

SimpleTEXT focuses on mobile devices and the web as a bridge between networked interfaces and public space. As mobile devices become more prolific, they also become separated by increased emphasis on individual use. The SimpleTEXT project looks beyond the screen and isolated usage of mobile devices to encourage collaborative use of input devices to both drive the visuals and audio output, inform each participant of each other's interaction, and allows people to actively participate in the performance while it happens. Our purpose with the performance is to create the possibility of large-scale interaction through anonymous collaboration, with immediate audio and visual feedback. SimpleTEXT encourages users to respond to one another's ideas and build upon the unexpected chains of ideas that may develop from their input.

It would be interesting to see how this type of collaborative participation application could be used by dance companies to create audience-directed performances.

Posted by Doug Fox at 5:37 PM - Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

October 11, 2005

Photo Blogging with Kristin Sloan of NYC Ballet

Kristin Sloan, a member of the New York City Ballet, maintains a picture blog of her dancing and travels. Using her Sony Ericsson S710a, Kristen takes shots of dancers, rehearsals, venues and more.

Kristin's caption for above picture - June 20, 2005: "The fairies in "A Midsummer Nights Dream" all wear super-long fake braids that get attached to our normal hair-do's. The ends then get safety-pinned to our costumes, so the heavy whip-like things don't take us out when we do a big jump or turn. It must have been pretty painful before that cool little trick was implemented."

Posted by Doug Fox at 6:25 AM - Permalink | Comments (0)

Dancing on Mobile Phones

Artificial Life, a developer of mobile and Internet applications, is rolling-out the V-disco software for mobile phones in Hong Kong later this year. 3G mobile phone users will be able to stream selected songs from SONY MBG music library while watching dance avatars move to the beat in a mini 3D browser.

Posted by Doug Fox at 6:15 AM - Permalink | Comments (0)

October 10, 2005

The iPod Nano and Dance Mobs

Stefan Engeseth has a solution to help Apple overcome the negative publicity generated by battery problems with the new iPod Nano.

In a October 6, 2005 post, "'iPod Dance' - A nonstop music solution with a perpetual batterty," Stefan describes how human movement, in the form of dancing, can be harnessed to power the iPod Nanos.

He recommends that Apple kick-off a marketing campaign via flash dances that feature Madonna dancing in the streets of New York. Read Stefan's post and comments to get a better idea of his recommendation.

I've always been intrigued by the idea of flash dancers - also called mobile clubbing or smart mobs. The idea is straightforward: A group of people communicate via email, instant messaging or text messaging and agree to meet at a designated public space at a specific date and time. When they arrive, somebody plays music via a portable music player, everybody dances for, say, 15 minutes and everybody leaves. That's it.

But in its own way, it's a pretty revolutionary idea. This type of event could not take place before ubiquitous communication tools existed that enabled groups of people to instantaneously communicate and determine on their own when and where they would gather to dance. No need for a venue, no need for expensive marketing programs, no DJ to decide what music to play and, overall, no pre-planning of any type.

There have been a number of examples of smart dance mobs over the past 2-3 years. Here are some articles and examples:

- Mobile Clubbing at Liverpool Street Station

- Flash Dance promotion during South by Southwest Festival earlier this year in Austin, Texas

- "From Flash-Mob To Mo-Club" November 2004 post to Robin Good's blog

- Pictures from Argentine Tango Flash Mob in June 2004

Posted by Doug Fox at 8:20 AM - Permalink | Comments (1)

September 15, 2005

Dance with Cingular and iTunes

To promote its new cell phone that integrates Apple's iTunes software to play songs, Cingular has launched the Make Me Dance website.

They've created a fun Flash application (click "Make Me Dance" on their site) that lets you choose a dancer, drag a song to a Cingular phone, and then watch the dancer keep beat with the music.

Posted by Doug Fox at 5:55 PM - Permalink | Comments (0)